Happy Birthday Papa!

Happy 85th Birthday to one of my favorite people....

Pope Benedict XVI!! (aka Papa Ben)


We're praying for you and are inspired by your example! Thank you for leading our Church so faithfully.



Please don't take this wrong, but I think he's the cutest little guy. Don't you? I think it's the shoes. Or maybe that boyish grin.

We even thought about naming our baby after him. But, she turned out to be a girl so that was that.

Let's be sure to send our Holy Father extra prayers today as he celebrates!

Overheard

"Is Roy Rogers dead?"

"Yes, I think he is."

"Hey Lily, maybe you'll see him in Heaven sometime."

"I'm not going to SEE Roy Rogers in Heaven. I won't be able to tell which one he is. He's an actor. He'll have make-up on. It's not like he'll be dressed up as a cowboy or anything."

"But MAYBE you'll still know which one he is."

-----------


Does this mean that when I finally get the chance to possibly meet Jim Caviezel that I won't even be able to tell it's him?



Shoot. Now I'm really disappointed.

Positively Giddy

We heard the word earlier this week that this is coming to a nearby city:



As in, the city we go to do most of our shopping, appointments, lessons, hubby's work, etc. Therefore, making this sweet treat so much more convenient than when we had to drive an hour for a Cherry Berry. This totally made my Thankful Thursday list!

And yes, we do get giddy over something like this. It's what happens when you live ten miles or more from a town/city with more than a bank, church, bar and gas station.

The only question now is: Jamie, your Cherry Berry or mine? We'll have to get together.

Happy Thursday!

Celebrating Easter With Children

We knew that this Holy Week and Triduum would once again be different for our family. Due to the current season our family is in, we knew that partaking of all of the beautiful Masses offered weren't options for us. Holy Thursday Masses in our area were late enough that we knew we would not all be able to attend. Bedtime with the little girls and one adult is currently pretty sketchy, so we opted to celebrate at home as a family.

Reed was home early from work, so we ventured out on a family walk into town and to our church. We took some time to pray and read a couple of the readings for Mass on Holy Thursday. Afterward, on our way home we stopped at the little playground in town. There's nothing like some family time exercising, praying and having fun doing it!







After our simple soup and bread supper that evening, we sang a couple of songs, read the gospel reading and then Reed and I washed our children's feet. Well, the three oldest any way. They all seemed to enjoy it as we talked about all of the symbolism and meaning of the readings, Jesus washing the disciples' feet, the agony in the garden and the Last Supper.





Good Friday service was in the early afternoon, so that was at a time that we could actually attend as a family. We squished our new seemingly 'large' family into a pew as the rest of church was pretty packed. Gianna even took a nap during a good portion of the service and as usual, Greta was good as gold.

The weather was not ideal on Friday, but we still took some time to get out for some good walking.

Holy Saturday morning started fairly bleak and windy. Some scattered little rain showers threatened to dampen the family Easter egg hunt that has become tradition. Thankfully, although it was cold and still pretty windy, it brightened up and we could still hold the hunt outside.

The little hunters (minus one who wasn't in the mood for a photo)



Aren't they cute? With my four cuties are a few of our GREAT-nieces and GREAT-nephew. Yes, we are WAY too young to have little GREAT's already. However, it makes for added fun for my kids who are at the bottom of the grandchildren food chain in hubby's family.

A hunting we will go



She seemed to enjoy it



And she slept through it



Easter morning we were up bright and early, as always, for our regular Mass time. The big kids scouted out their baskets and helped the little girls find theirs as well. We pulled on our Easter best and headed to Mass to celebrate with 'Alleluias'.

After Mass, Greta awoke just in time for a quick photo. Not perfect, but these days we just aim for everyone at least looking in the general vicinity of the camera. Mission accomplished.



The highlight of the big kids' Easter baskets turned out to be the Croc flip flops (on sale last week at Target) and the Angry Birds mini kites (thank you, Walgreens). The kites have been a thrill for the kids and while I type this post quickly this evening, dear hubby is unraveling miles of kite string knots.



I think we successfully celebrated Easter and the triduum to the best of our family's ability this year. Hopefully we made it rich in symbolism, memories, faith and family for all of us. We celebrated along with the universal Catholic Church in our own little domestic church.

Happy Easter season!

In The Desert

It's the holiest week of the liturgical year and yet I still find myself wondering where the season of Lent has gone and feel a bit lost.

Life in general is like that right now. A household with a newborn, toddler and growing up big kids seems to have left me in a time warp.

I am still wandering in the desert. The dry and lonely desert. I think that when your spiritual life is currently bland and lifeless, so too many other facets of your life can tend to feel. Perhaps I'm mistaking the dry, destitute and empty wasteland as useless and forsaken. For such times as these I may be most fruitful and being formed most by the Divine Potter's hands. His voice may be silent and His guiding hand gentle, but yet they are ever-present.

My Lenten walk may have been meant to be scattered with less boulders and more pebbles and stones this year. He probably knew that life adjustments with two little ones would take me further in my Lenten offerings than another type of sacrifice ever could.

Instead of wishing I had a Lenten do-over perhaps I need to be patient with myself and make my Holy Week more prayerful. Maybe by reminding myself of the sacrifice of Christ Himself, I will make it through the desert. Like Simon of Cyrene, maybe I am needed to help someone else carry their cross today.

As we walk through this week and the journey of Jesus' passion and death, may it draw us closer to Him and to His mother who stood at the foot of the cross.

Two Months

My, how we love this girl!

And none of us can get enough of her.

When God planned a perfect surprise for us, he knew Greta would be a precious addition for our family. We couldn't agree more. I can't imagine having to wait any longer for her. Meek and mild, she definitely is child #4 who takes in all around her but isn't bothered by the looming chaos. To add to perfection, she even decided to start sleeping through the night by 6 weeks. Yes, God is good and knew exactly what we needed.

Our little sweetheart had her two month check up today and weighed in at 11 lbs. 7 oz. She's a growing and healthy little girl whose blue eyes and big smile light up the room...and our lives. She most definitely is our 'Baby Gem'.

How To Tame Your Toddler

She squeals and screams.

She wiggles and squirms.

She tosses, turns and flips.

She walks and runs.

She clings.

Welcome to the 'hood: Toddlerhood.

When life brings you to the place where one resides in your home, there are a few things to keep in mind.


* Let her stand on the couch for endless amounts of time (keeping her within your reach of course, because you know what happens if you don't) staring out the window and pounding violently gently tapping on it. There are so many things to see in the outside world, even if you can't be out in it right at the moment.

* When she is old enough to walk and make the decision to walk right out of your church pew, hand her over to daddy and let him be the pew police for an hour. Many fathers have grown buff with this simple workout routine. On top of the Catholic calisthenics (stand, sit, kneel), the twist-turn-flip-flop-don't let me drop additions give him a well rounded workout.


* No matter how much you baby-proof your house, a toddler will find plenty of ways to get into things. She will explore and therefore find new ways to scare you half to death when she shows off her new findings. When you got rid of the coffee table because of the dangers it posed and replaced it with a cushy ottoman, you probably didn't realize that one day it would be her new favorite climbing obstacle.


* Don't let her innocence fool you. The cute look is either disguising
a) the bug she just ate off the dining room floor
b) the poopy diaper she is waiting to surprise you with later or
c) her plans for yet another toddler tornado in the near future

* Give her a book to quietly read (because she's brilliant for her age, of course) in the corner because it makes you the best parent ever for giving her the love of literature at an early age. If you find that she's grown tired of her cardboard and paper diet, feel free to move all of those beloved books to a high bookshelf.


* Introduce the sippy cup as soon as possible and by all means keep that thing full throughout the day. Many a problem is solved with the lure of the sippy cup and it serves as a much needed diversion on many an occasion daily.


* Be careful not to introduce the use of screen time too early for your toddler, but when the day is rough and it's only 9 am, technology is your best friend. Free children's apps (hint: Color Drops is colorful, makes sounds and lets your toddler doodle) on your iPod will take priority and you will soon rid it of anything else. It's ok, because your sanity is worth it. You're trying to keep her busy while you teach your two students, after all.


Lastly, remember that it hasn't always been this way nor will this last forever. Be happy that she is healthy and thriving. And especially grateful when it's bedtime and she goes to sleep. Quickly jump in to bed yourself because tomorrow you're gonna do this all over again.